Description
The “Catechism of Fray Pedro de Gante” is an emblematic work of all Latin American countries. The name “Testerian manuscripts” is applied to pictographic catechisms produced in New Spain by the Franciscans and Dominicans to convert the natives. About 25 of these catechisms are cataloged throughout the world. One of the oldest seems to be this one by Fray Pedro de Gante, probably made between the years 1525 and 1528. The drawings, which apparently are very old, are not just illustrations of the text or reminders. In reality, there are incorporated characters from a writing that was read in the Nahuatl language (the language of the Aztecs). The writing method descends directly from the pictographic writing of the natives, which includes numerous elements, such as iconic, symbolic and phonetic characters.
The original has been in the National Library of Madrid since 1987. It contains 83 pages, 5.5 x 7.7 cm format, bleached paper, illuminated with solid colors. On page 3 there is an inscription in purple ink that says: National Historical Archive. The facsimile is bound in leather as small geometric drawings. It has a golden closure handmade by goldsmith Álvaro Prada. The original has a simpler and more primitive binding, also in sheepskin.
The facsimile edition is accompanied by a book (bound in hardcover, with foil on the cover, format 16.5 x 23.5 cm, 152 pages) with the transcription and study by Dr. Justino Cortés Castellanos, Mexican specialist in the so-called Testerian catechisms.
And both, facsimile and study book, are presented in a blue case, lined with fine velvet, measuring 26.7 x 33 x 6.2 cm, and with a total weight of 1.78 kg.
This work won the Award for the Best Book Published in 1992, in the category of Bibliophilia and Facsimiles, awarded by the Ministry of Culture.
Complete copy and in perfect condition, new, unused.
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